Rumblings from China – Nicholas Kristof

From the New York Times via Peking Duck:

In the 17 years since the bloody crackdown on the Tiananmen democracy movement, China has enjoyed an economic miracle and remarkable political stability. But my hunch is that that period of smooth sailing is now coming to an end.

Wildcat protests, some violent and involving thousands of people, have been exploding around the country. By the Chinese government’s own count, there are now more than 200 protests a day, prompted by everything from layoffs to government seizures of land.

The protests may grow if, as seems likely, China’s economic model appears less miraculous in the years ahead. [Full Text]

See also “China’s Leader Pushes Doctrine While Warning of Corruption”:

President http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hu_Jintao
of China said Friday that his political concept of maintaining the “advanced nature” of the Communist Party was the key to its survival, while warning that corruption threatened to undermine its hold on power…

He said in his address on Friday that despite a seemingly endless effort to control corruption by demanding internal discipline within the party, abuse remained widespread. [Full Text]